Vehicle sales seen hitting 210,000 units in 2013

Strong vehicle sales in the first quarter has prompted the Chamber of Auto Manufacturers in the Philippines Inc. (Campi) to increase the sales target for this year.

Industry wide sales are now expected to reach 210,000 units in 2013 or 5 percent more than the initial forecast of 200,000 units, said Campi president Rommel Gutierrez in a briefing Monday.

In the first quarter of 2013, motor vehicle sales rose by nearly a third as more optimistic consumers and low interest rates fueled demand for new cars and trucks.

In a joint report, the Campi and the Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA) said car and truck sales rose 29 percent to record levels in January to March with Toyota as the top seller.

Campi and TMA members, as well as other manufacturers that report their sales to either of the two groups, sold a combined 41,702 units in the three-month period, beaching the 40,000-mark in the first quarter for the first time.

“Traditionally, the first quarter has always yielded the lowest quarter sales for any given year,” they said.

Gutierrez said the higher sales indicated that the country “is indeed on the path towards motorization.”

Currently, only three out of 100 Filipinos own automobiles.

Leading the performers for the first quarter of 2013 is Toyota Motors Philippines Corp. with a 41 percent market share, followed by Mitsubishi Motors Philippines with 24 percent.

Honda Cars Philippines followed with 9.51 percent; Isuzu Philippines Corp. 6.56 percent, and Ford Philippines, 6.44 percent.

Sales of passenger cars, which made up a third of the total, rose 46 percent to a total of 13,821 units. Commercial vehicles increased 23 percent over the same period last year to 27,881 vehicles.

Within the commercial vehicle category, trucks and buses posted a 69-percent increase with 447 units sold compared to the comparable figure of 265 units.

Gutierrez said this was mainly due to purchases by various government agencies that have been refleeting since the start of the year.

Sales of Asian utility vehicles (AUV) and light trucks lagged behind the rest of the industry, growing just 3.5 percent and 2.5 percent, respectively.

The higher sales for the first quarter, normally one of the slowest periods of the year for car sellers, indicates that the industry would be able to sell at least 200,000 units by the end of the year.

Gutierrez also said the Philippines had to finally come up with an industry road map this year to meet industry expectations.

“We are not just talking about incentives. There should be clear policy direction. Government support is a deciding factor in future investments,” he said.